Jung 15, 1915 fore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people [to administer justice to them], that I may discern between good and bad; for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?” Is it any wonder that we read further that in the dream the Lord manifested his good pleasure at this request: “And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither has asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment [justice]; therefore, I have done according to thy words: lo, THE WATCH TOWER (195-196) I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee. And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches, and honor: so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee, all thy days. “T knelt before thy gracious throne, And asked for peace with suppliant knee; And peace was given: not peace alone, But love, and joy, and ecstasy.” Vout. XXXVI BROOKLYN, N. Y., JULY 1, 1915 No. 13 VIEWS FROM THE WATCH TOWER THE FIRE OF THIS DAY Prayers that God would stop the great European war have not been answered. On the contrary, as pointed out in these columns nearly a year ago, the entire world is involved and distressed. ‘the Bible predictions that the armies of all nations would be gathered to the valley of Jehoshaphat is proving true. (Joel 3:9-14) The Valley of Jehoshaphat is the name of the cemetery outside the walls of Jerusalem, and the prophecy signified that the armies of all nations would be gathered as one vast cemetery. With a battle front of over sixteen hundred miles, and with all kinds of infernal machinery, the flower of Europe’s manhood goes down to death. All the participating nations are regretful, for each had hoped for greater successes than yet achieved. The Bible indicates great disappointment of all nations—no great victory for any, but on the contrary, humiliation and impoverishment. Already the bonds of all the warring powers are greatly depreciated. All national debts are so heavy that many thoughtful people are expecting that a result of the war will be repudiation of all national debts, as well as social revolution. Great victories and final achievement console the people for great losses; and similarly, great national disasters in the face of a successful foe, tend to cement the national spirit; but with a terrible war, with heavy losses, peace will mean discontent, revolution and, according to the Bible, ultimate anarchy. How consoling the thought given us by the words of Jesus, that for the elect’s sake these days shall be shortened, but that otherwise the entire human family would be obliterated as the reign of selfishness and enmity would progress! Thanks be to God that we know who the elect are—Jesus and his saintly followers glorified! Thanks be to God that we can have confidence that these will constitute the kingdom of God’s dear Son, and be backed by all the power of heaven in the establishment of the reign of righteousness! Thanks be to God that we can have full confidence in the divine promises to the effect that the outcome of Messiah’s reign will be “peace on earth and good will toward men” in a world-wide Eden! Thanks be to God that we can trust his promise that Messiah’s kingdom will be successful in the complete uplift of the fallen race out of sin and death—back to the image and likeness of God for whosoever will! Thanks be to God that after all shall have had full opportunity for such recovery, all wilfully wicked will be utterly destroyed in the second death! Thus far we are told the war is not deeply felt nor deeply impressed upon the average non-combatants. In all the warring countries business is fairly good. Money is kept in circulation by the manufacture of munitions of war and military equipment and supplies. Thus far the chief brunt falls upon the soldiers in the ranks and upon the bereaved widows and orphans. The chief evidences of war, except on the scenes of strife, are the numbers of men everywhere in military uniform, and the numbers of women wearing mourning. However, as credit depreciates and gold becomes more scarce, the prices of commodities of every sort will advance, wages in Hurope will be forced upward, with accompanying labor troubles, leading on to the foretold great earthquake—revolution (Rev. 16:18); leading on still further to the predicted fire which is to consume every vestige of present civilization—not a literal fire, but anarchy. This fire has already begun as respects religious faith. Hearken to the Apostle Paul, “The fire of that day shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.’ It will prove who have builded character and faith with the gold, silver and precious stones of divine promises, and who have builded their hopes with the wood, hay and stubble of human tradition. The latter, the Apostle declares, will be utterly burned or destroyed by the symbolic fire of this day, while the former class of faith alone will be able to withstand that fiery time. Do we not already see this? Do we not see that the great professors of colleges and nearly all the great ministers of the various churches have completely lost faith in the Bible? Do we not see that the greater enlightenment of our time is making the creeds of all denominations ridiculous, absurd, to their own upholders and to all mankind? Do we not see that those who have abandoned the Bible have practically nothing left— merely their own guesswork? Do we not see that the guesswork of evolutionists is already proving unsatisfactory to them, and that they are losing all faith in a personal God, and merely assuming the possibility of an immortality of which they have no proofs and of the character of which they have only speculation? Ah, as the Apostle indicated, those who have the faith, the character structure represented by the gold, silver and precious stones of divine revelation—these alone have an anchorage of soul sure and steadfast which enters into that within the veil, and fastens for support to the merit of the sacrificial death of the great Redeemer who, “by the grace of God, tasted death for every man,” and who by the grace of God is to be the great King whose kingdom will deliver Adam and his race from sin, death, ignorance, superstition, into the liberty of the children of God. THE LORD’S BRETHREN NOT IN DARKNESS Present conditions are very favorable for the spread of the truth. Everywhere the public are thinking more than ever respecting religious things, and wondering what it means that great nations, each purporting to be Christ’s kingdom, should be so locked in deadly strife. Their perplexity and questions furnish excellent opportunity for explaining the Bible hopes and teachings. They are ready as never before for the message that these kingdoms are deceived into thinking themselves Christ’s kingdoms, whereas the Bible calls them “kingdoms of this world” and Gentile kingdoms, ‘hey are ready for the message that Messiah’s kingdom is to furnish the remedy for all the ills of the world by uplifting mankind out of ignorance, superstition, sin and death. They are ready for the information that although Christ was eighteen hundred years ago declared worthy to become the King he has not yet taken office in the full sense of the word, but is waiting for the completion of the church, which has been in process of calling and disciplining and polishing for more than eighteen hundred years. ‘They are ready for the message that Christ is now taking to himself his great power and beginning his reign, and that the present disturbance of Europe is what is described in Revelation as the nations being angry, and God’s wrath having come, etc.—Rev. 11:18. In view of these favorable factors, we perceive our privilege in continuing to give no uncertain sound upon the silver trumpets of Jubilee. Apparently many of God’s servants are being sealed in their foreheads with this knowledge, this present truth, as the Scriptures predicted: ‘Ye brethren are not in darkness that that day should overtake you as a thief” (1 Thessalonians 5:4), though it shall come upon the whole world as a thief and a snare. As the Savior said, perplexities are causing the hearts of men to fail for fear and for looking after the things coming upon the world, still future, but because of the sealing in our foreheads—the clear intellectual knowledge—the servants of God may, as Jesus suggested, be lifting up their heads and rejoicing, realizing from present developments that their deliverance draweth nigh—that the resurrection of the church and her glorious establishment as Messiah’s bride in the kingdom, are near at hand, even at the door. WINDS OF WAR LET LOOSE How plainly now we can see what we saw less distinctly in the past—that the winds of war have been held back for approximately forty years to give opportunity for the sealing of the servants of God in their foreheads, for the spread of true Bible study all over the world, in all languages, Any one thinking of the present war as being suddenly thrust upon [5715]
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